[email protected]/phelio for 100+ more chapters for only $3 now
Chu Yueli looked down at Sam's outstretched hand.
Her mind was spinning.
For a thousand years, the absolute highest rule of the Frozen Cloud Asgard was simple: no men were ever allowed inside.
To break this rule meant terrible punishment. It meant betraying her ancestors.
But then, Chu Yueli thought about her sisters.
She thought about her own master, who had died far too young, her body completely frozen from the inside out.
Was a strict, ancient rule really more important than the lives of her family?
Chu Yueli took a deep breath. She reached out and gently placed her cold hand inside Sam's warm one.
"If I bring a man into the sect,"
Chu Yueli said softly, looking him right in the eye.
"The Sect Master might punish me severely. She might even try to kill you for breaking our sacred barrier."
"She can try,"
Sam smiled gently, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.
"But I promise you, I will not hurt her, and I will not let her hurt you. I only bring life, Chu Yueli. Not death."
Chu Yueli felt a deep, strange sense of peace wash over her. She nodded slowly.
"Then I will lead you there,"
Chu Yueli agreed.
"I will show you the safe way through the snowy mountains."
Sam turned his head and looked at Xia Qingyue, who was still standing quietly in the shadows.
"Are you coming with us, Qingyue?"
Sam asked kindly.
Xia Qingyue looked up. Her eyes were no longer cold and empty.
They were full of deep thought and a new kind of warmth.
"Yes,"
Xia Qingyue said, walking over to her master.
"I belong to the Frozen Cloud Asgard too. If you are going to save my sisters, I want to be there."
"Good,"
Sam said. He waved his hand toward the giant silver spaceship.
"Then let's go. It is much faster to fly than to walk."
A ramp of blue light slowly lowered from the bottom of the ship.
Chu Yueli and Xia Qingyue hesitated for a moment, but little Jasmine just rolled her eyes and marched right up the light ramp like she owned the place.
Taking a deep breath, the cold fairy and her disciple followed them inside.
The inside of the spaceship was bright, warm, and filled with glowing screens.
Chu Yueli sat down in a soft chair in the command room.
She watched through the giant glass window as the ship lifted silently into the sky.
In just a few seconds, they were flying high above the clouds, heading straight toward the frozen north.
Chu Yueli looked at Sam, who was sitting relaxed in the captain's chair.
"Senior Sam,"
Chu Yueli asked quietly, breaking the silence.
"If we accept your new path... will we lose our ice arts? Our freezing power is the only way we can protect ourselves in this cruel world."
Sam turned his chair to face her.
"You will not lose your ice,"
Sam explained softly.
"Right now, your technique uses pure, dead cold. It freezes your enemies, but it also freezes your own hearts. It controls you."
Sam raised his hand. A beautiful, glowing blue lotus flower made of pure, freezing ice appeared in his palm. It was freezing cold, but it didn't feel dangerous. It felt alive.
"My path will teach you how to balance the cold with the warmth of life,"
Sam said, letting the ice flower float over to her.
"You will learn to control the ice, instead of letting the ice control you. You will be much stronger, and you will live a very long, happy life."
Chu Yueli gently touched the floating ice lotus. It did not bite her skin. It felt perfectly safe.
"It sounds like a dream,"
Chu Yueli whispered, a small, genuine smile finally breaking through her cold fairy mask.
"It is a reality,"
Sam promised.
"And we are going to give that reality to your entire sect today."
The giant silver spaceship flew smoothly through the dark night.
In just a few hours, the green forests disappeared.
The world outside the window turned into a pure, endless sea of white snow and sharp mountain peaks.
"We are close,"
Chu Yueli said, pointing to a massive mountain hidden behind thick, snowy clouds.
As the ship flew closer, a giant, glowing blue shield appeared in the sky.
Behind the magic shield was a breathtakingly beautiful palace.
Everything was made of clear, sparkling ice.
"That is the Frozen Cloud Asgard,"
Chu Yueli explained, her voice growing a little nervous.
"The barrier is completely locked. No one can enter without the Sect Master's permission."
"Do not worry,"
Sam smiled calmly.
He didn't fire any weapons. He didn't use any violent power to break the ice. He simply guided the ship forward.
A soft pink light covered the spaceship.
Like a ghost walking through a wall, the giant metal castle slipped right through the ancient blue barrier without making a single sound.
Chu Yueli watched in pure amazement. Her sect's ultimate defense meant absolutely nothing to him.
The ship slowly lowered and landed quietly right in the middle of the sect's main courtyard.
Instantly, alarms rang out across the icy palace.
Dozens of beautiful women wearing white dresses rushed out into the snow.
They all held sharp ice swords.
They looked terrified but ready to fight the giant metal beast that had just appeared in their home.
"It is time,"
Sam said, standing up from his chair.
The blue ramp lowered again.
Sam walked down the ramp first.
Little Jasmine followed right behind him, holding her chin up high.
Then came Chu Yueli and Xia Qingyue.
When the women in the courtyard saw a man stepping onto their sacred ground, they gasped in horror.
"A man!"
Someone yelled.
"How did a man get inside?!"
The crowd of women suddenly split apart.
A beautiful, mature woman with an incredibly cold and heavy aura walked forward.
She wore a silver crown made of ice.
She was Gong Yuxian, the Sect Master of the Frozen Cloud Asgard.
Her eyes locked onto Chu Yueli, burning with absolute fury.
"Chu Yueli!"
The Sect Master shouted, her voice echoing like a freezing wind.
"What is the meaning of this? You dare bring a man into our sacred home? You have broken our most absolute rule!"
Chu Yueli trembled for a second.
Her whole life had been about following orders.
But then, she thought about the ice lotus Sam had shown her. She thought about life.
Chu Yueli took a brave step forward and stood in front of Sam.
"I broke the rule, Sect Master,"
Chu Yueli answered, her voice steady and clear.
"But I did it to save us. I brought a man who can cure our curse."
The Sect Master's eyes narrowed.
She raised her ice sword, pointing it directly at Sam's chest.
"Lies,"
The Sect Master said coldly.
"There is no cure. Men only bring pain and ruin. Step away from him, Chu Yueli, or you will be punished with death."
Sam gently put his hand on Chu Yueli's shoulder and smoothly stepped in front of her.
He looked right at the angry Sect Master. He did not raise a weapon.
He just stood there, looking at her with deep, understanding eyes.
"Rules are made to protect the living,"
Sam said, his voice warm but heavy enough to shake the snow off the roofs.
"But your rules are not protecting your people. They are slowly killing them."
"You know nothing about our path!"
The Sect Master snapped.
"I know that you are freezing from the inside out,"
Sam answered gently.
He pointed a finger at her chest.
"I know that your heart is struggling to beat right now. I know that you watch your young disciples die every year, and you cry alone in the dark because you cannot stop it."
The Sect Master froze. Her hand holding the sword began to shake. He was speaking her deepest, most painful secrets out loud.
"I am not here to conquer your palace,"
Sam told her softly.
"I am not here to hurt your people. I am here to offer you a fire that will not burn you, and a life that will not end in ice."
Sam slowly held out his hand. A beautiful, glowing pink lotus bloomed in his palm.
It radiated a heavy, comforting warmth that instantly chased the bitter cold out of the courtyard.
The women around the courtyard lowered their swords. They could feel the pure, healing energy coming from the flower. It felt like standing in the warm spring sun after a lifetime of winter.
"Put down your sword, Sect Master,"
Sam asked kindly.
"Let's talk about saving your family."